94 TRIOSTEUM PERFOLIATUM, 
when combined with calomel, its operation was at- 
tended with a certainty, hardly inferior to that of 
jalap. The aqueous and spirituous extract of the 
root were likewise efficacious, and nearly in an 
equal degree. Preparations made from different 
parts of the herb possessed much less activity, the 
decoction of the leaves operating only as a diapho- 
retic, and that of the stalk producing no effect. 
The late Professor Barton of Philadelphia, in 
his Collections toward a Materia Medica of the U- 
nited States, speaks of this plant as a mild and 
good cathartic, sometimes operating as a diuretic 
and in large doses as an emetic. 
My own experience with this plant has not 
been extéisive, yet sufficient to satisfy me of its 
medicinal power. Where I have administered it, 
it has generally proved cathartic, a larger dose 
however being requisite for this purpose, than of 
jalap or aloes. It has sometimes failed to pro- 
duce any effect, and I am inclined to believe that 
its efficacy is much impaired by age. ‘Those who 
may incline to employ it, will do well to renew 
their stock annually, and to keep the powder in 
close stopped phials. 
A dose of the bark of the root in powder is 
twenty or twenty five grains, and of the extract, 
a somewhat smaller quantity, 
